Preliminary investigation of the hydrogen storage potential in the Port Campbell Embayment, Otway Basin, Victoria, Australia

Abstract

To understand Victoria’s potential for underground hydrogen storage (UHS), the depleted, unproduced and repurposed fields of the Port Campbell Embayment were assessed for subsurface storage suitability. Additionally, the saline reservoir storage potential of the area was investigated. Data from historic exploration and previous studies in the Port Campbell Embayment were used to undertake geological investigations and storage capacity estimates. The fields investigated in this preliminary study have potential, with the Waarre Formation-Belfast Mudstone reservoir-seal pair highly favourable for UHS. Reservoir injectivity assessments suggest the existing fields are capable of multiple cycles of injection and withdrawal. Seal capacity analysis indicates that the Belfast Mudstone is capable of retaining column heights of hydrogen ranging from 55 to 1267 m, which mostly exceed the greatest known vertical closures in the onshore Otway Basin. The hydrogen storage capacity and injectivity results were used to rank the fields. The Iona field is the most prospective site, with an estimated working gas capacity of 9.1 petajoules (PJ). The total working gas capacity for hydrogen storage in the Port Campbell Embayment fields is approximately 42.7 PJ. Further storage in the area is possible within the Waarre saline reservoir play, with an estimated range of 50.7 to 202.7 PJ.